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  #4461  
Old Posted Aug 27, 2015, 1:45 AM
airwx airwx is offline
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Originally Posted by Tech House View Post
To what does "tear down that wall" refer? I'm only aware of that in reference to I-35. Is there a proposal to widen Guadalupe on the east side?
I'm assuming he's talking about UT's small wall on the east side of Guadalupe. Some groups like AURA have talked about that.
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  #4462  
Old Posted Aug 29, 2015, 3:49 AM
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I'm kicking around a few ideas and I'm looking for information to do some amateur feasibility inquiries so I'm wondering where the best place to go for the following:

Daytime and Night time populations for downtown

Commuter info (by bike, by bus, etc.) into downtown

I got some general ideas where to go but I figured y'all would know where to look for the most up to date info.

Last edited by TexasPlaya; Aug 29, 2015 at 4:06 AM.
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  #4463  
Old Posted Aug 29, 2015, 4:10 AM
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Trying to get some firsthand knowledge and opinions here:

People who commute to DT/UT, do you find showering/changing clothes/getting ready/cleaning up easy to do away from your home? Or do you prefer to go home/friend's house/significant others to do that?
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  #4464  
Old Posted Sep 8, 2015, 1:44 AM
smt1 smt1 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TexasPlaya View Post
Trying to get some firsthand knowledge and opinions here:

People who commute to DT/UT, do you find showering/changing clothes/getting ready/cleaning up easy to do away from your home? Or do you prefer to go home/friend's house/significant others to do that?
There's a decent amount of office towers that have showers these days, though they aren't typically for public use; mellow jonnys and st david's church have facilities you can buy access @, as well as a number of gyms.
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  #4465  
Old Posted Sep 8, 2015, 2:49 PM
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Originally Posted by smt1 View Post
There's a decent amount of office towers that have showers these days, though they aren't typically for public use; mellow jonnys and st david's church have facilities you can buy access @, as well as a number of gyms.
And if those aren't feasible, I've been able to get by with a simple wipedown with a cold, wet washcloth in the restroom. Throw on some antiperspirant and I'm good to go...and I sweat like crazy too.
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  #4466  
Old Posted Sep 8, 2015, 7:39 PM
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You can also always change at work. Leave your work clothes there so they don't get crumpled during the ride, and take some street clothes for the ride/walk. There's always a way. Besides, this is Austin and it's not always expected that you wear a suit since we live in a hot and humid climate.
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  #4467  
Old Posted Sep 11, 2015, 3:46 AM
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Originally Posted by Tech House View Post
To what does "tear down that wall" refer? I'm only aware of that in reference to I-35. Is there a proposal to widen Guadalupe on the east side?

Here's more on the wall:

Quote:
AURA, UT group want to tear down wall, plant trees
Thursday, September 10, 2015 by Sunny Sone

The West Campus Wall – which runs along much of the University of Texas’ western edge, separating the campus from Guadalupe Street – has long been a symbol of UT’s isolation from the rest of the city, and several groups agree it’s time to tear it down.

That was one of the sentiments expressed by both transit activist group AURA and My Guadalupe, a UT student organization, at a forum concerning the Guadalupe Street Corridor Improvement Program on Tuesday night on the UT campus. The forum – hosted in a building just yards from the wall – included presentations from John Laycock and Robert Prentiss of AURA, Jacob Brackmann of My Guadalupe and architecture professor Sinclair Black, who helped design the Second Street District downtown.

“The Drag is a place where lots of different modes of transportation are colliding very unhappily,” Prentiss said. “People are standing in the bike lane, people are sitting on the wall in the blazing sun waiting for the bus. It’s just not working well.”
http://www.austinmonitor.com/stories...t-shade-trees/
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  #4468  
Old Posted Sep 11, 2015, 3:57 AM
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I would need to see pictures of how they think taking the wall down will affect the street. I'm not seeing much room to work with, wall or no wall, unless they want to cut down those mature trees. The wall doesn't bother me.
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  #4469  
Old Posted Sep 12, 2015, 12:00 AM
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Originally Posted by lzppjb View Post
I would need to see pictures of how they think taking the wall down will affect the street. I'm not seeing much room to work with, wall or no wall, unless they want to cut down those mature trees. The wall doesn't bother me.
As always, we disagree. I think it's a great idea to tear it down and transform the whole look, feel, and function of the east side of Guadalupe. The wall is hideous and creates a visual barrier that is pointless and off-putting. Walking that side of Guadalupe is a very unpleasant experience, hemmed in between the street and the wall. But conservatives love rigid definition, control, conformity, barriers, tradition, and regimentation, so of course it would appeal to you. Actually I often agree with you, I just hate that wall. It's a subjective aesthetic judgment, but seemed like a great opportunity to rib you.

Last edited by Tech House; Sep 12, 2015 at 12:15 AM.
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  #4470  
Old Posted Sep 24, 2015, 8:07 PM
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  #4471  
Old Posted Oct 1, 2015, 3:30 AM
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Speedway to be reconstructed as pedestrian-mall area:

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/2015...rian-mall-area
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  #4472  
Old Posted Oct 1, 2015, 8:37 AM
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I sprained both ankles stepping off that curb in front of Gregory Gym one morning on my way to McCombs to take a test. The pavement was uneven and there were huge fissures in the surface. It sucked taking that test.
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  #4473  
Old Posted Oct 1, 2015, 2:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Flatiron View Post
Speedway to be reconstructed as pedestrian-mall area:

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/2015...rian-mall-area
"Where 30 years ago, the Main Mall was sort of the center of campus, now Speedway is sort of the center of campus and it should change to reflect that.”"

What, the center of campus can shift? And plans should actually change to reflect that? We shouldn't base all future transportation decisions off of plans and patterns from 20 years ago. <shocked>

(beating a dead horse, but still annoyed by the urban rail vote, and those that campaigned against it on this point)
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  #4474  
Old Posted Oct 1, 2015, 6:16 PM
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The message that transportation needs to added to places that are already served by road is flawed. The value of urban rail is that it spurs new type of development (TRD) which lets the city grow without filling up the roads. We're never going to reduce traffic at this point (without Detroit-style job loss).
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  #4475  
Old Posted Oct 1, 2015, 9:01 PM
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^How many rail lines can you name that went where there was low density and it actually spurred a lot of development or was considered a success using cost analysis? The only line I know of that tried this was the VTA. http://www.mercurynews.com/gtraffic/...-among-nations
ATX has been densifying all over the place, most of which have no rail....
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  #4476  
Old Posted Oct 2, 2015, 2:46 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lzppjb View Post
I sprained both ankles stepping off that curb in front of Gregory Gym one morning on my way to McCombs to take a test. The pavement was uneven and there were huge fissures in the surface. It sucked taking that test.
I'm sure those fissures are still there. That street probably hasn't changed in decades! I'm excited about the new pedestrian access. Walking is an important form of transportation.
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  #4477  
Old Posted Oct 6, 2015, 4:39 PM
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Originally Posted by nixcity View Post
^How many rail lines can you name that went where there was low density and it actually spurred a lot of development or was considered a success using cost analysis? The only line I know of that tried this was the VTA. http://www.mercurynews.com/gtraffic/...-among-nations
ATX has been densifying all over the place, most of which have no rail....
Dude, time to educate yourself.

TOD is a proven way of addressing housing demand without relying on driving infrastructure. The FTA provides transportation grants because of how effective it is.

Red Line for example. The developments within walking distance of the current light rail stops on Lamar, for example, were zoned due to their proximity to the Crestview station.

Boston Area
https://www.bostonglobe.com/business...OEI/story.html

Indianapolis
http://www.indyconnect.org/pages/Red-Line-TOD/

Los Angeles
http://la.streetsblog.org/2012/05/24...-the-red-line/

These are just the first couple google searches that popped up.
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  #4478  
Old Posted Oct 6, 2015, 5:18 PM
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^Yes, I am more than aware of TOD's, and yes, obviously, good transit can help spur that. My point is we are in no position to spend half a billion to a billion dollars to plop down a line and hope and pray (and legislate) that the development comes. It has taken 10 years for most of the red line's "TOD's" to get started....And to my point before, density has occurred in numerous areas of the city WITHOUT rail. Successful rail lines (especially starter lines) need to be where the density already calls for it!!!! Now dude, educate yourself on starter lines and come back to me on some that did not already have high levels of density in place. BTW, the ones from Boston and LA that you already posted started with even higher density levels than our G/L corridor.
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  #4479  
Old Posted Oct 6, 2015, 8:22 PM
Novacek Novacek is offline
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Originally Posted by nixcity View Post
^Yes, I am more than aware of TOD's, and yes, obviously, good transit can help spur that. My point is we are in no position to spend half a billion to a billion dollars to plop down a line and hope and pray (and legislate) that the development comes.
Good thing that's not what we did, and instead planned a line that went to some of the areas of Austin where the density is already the highest (riverside, downtown, campus) or already in progress (highland).

Too bad it didn't pass, in part due to the extreme ignorance of some.


Quote:
Originally Posted by nixcity View Post
It has taken 10 years for most of the red line's "TOD's" to get started.
2015 - 2010 (when the red line started) = 5 years.

Where's the 10 years?
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  #4480  
Old Posted Oct 6, 2015, 11:04 PM
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Though I'm admittedly not up to speed on all of the TOD elements brought on (or hope to be brought on) from the Red Line...but isn't there a decent amount of TOD already? Crestview, Highland, and MLK have seen developments, and then there's Plaza Saltillo, which to me seems like it has the most potential (and several things that have already happened). Am I wrong in my understanding of these things? It seems to me that, while perhaps not exclusively attributed to the Red Line (since it leaves a lot to be desired anyway), it's certainly helped. I'm personally a fan the urban rail plan that didn't happen also...while it wasn't perfect to address the needs of the entire city, it was at least a start - more than we have now, for sure. I certainly don't think it would have been a failure, as many have suggested. What is lacking is a full, city-wide plan (network), showing how Urban Rail and MetroRail sync up - even connect it to BRT and other bus lines. When people see the big picture, they may be more supportive...rather than slapping stuff together piecemeal and not truly having a concept of how it's supposed to work in the long run. What I've seen thus far has lacked future, long-range plans...but that doesn't mean we should throw everything out. With that method nothing will ever be accomplished.
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